### 6897 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 24 / Wednesday, February 5, 2014 / Notices

1 75 FR 57912 (September 23, 2010). 2 133 FERC ¶ 62,229. base charge divided by the annual energy sales.

Rate Schedule BCP–F8, Rate Order No. WAPA–150 was approved on an interim basis by the Deputy Secretary of Energy on September 16, 2010, for a 5 year period beginning on October 1, 2010, and ending September 30, 2015. 1 The schedule received final approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on December 9,

2010. 2 Western’s existing rate formula for electric service requires recalculation of the base charge and rates annually based on updated financial and hydrology data. The proposed base charge for fiscal year (FY) 2015 under Rate Schedule BCP–F8 is $90,697,927, and the proposed composite rate is 24.72 mills/ kilowatthour.

The proposed BCP electric service base charge represents an increase of approximately 19 percent compared to the FY 2014 base charge. The 19 percent increase in the base charge is based on the most current financial data available at this time, which was taken from the latest rate-base power repayment study. The proposed BCP composite rate represents an increase of approximately 22 percent compared to the FY 2014 composite rate. The 22 percent increase is based on current hydrology conditions and corresponding Lake Mead elevations. The following table compares the existing and proposed base charge and composite rate. This proposal, effective October 1, 2014, is preliminary and is subject to change upon publication of final formula rates.



### COMPARISON OF 

### EXISTING AND 

### P ROPOSED 

### BASE 

### C HARGE AND 

### COMPOSITE 

### RATE

Existing October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014 Proposed October 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015 Percent change

Base Charge ($) ...................................................................................... 76,108,019 90,697,927 19 Composite Rate (mills/kWh) .................................................................... 20.18 24.72 22

The increase in the proposed base charge is due to increases in the annual operation and maintenance expenses, visitor center costs, uprating program principal payments, capital investment principal payments and replacement costs. Currently, there is no projected year-end carryover from FY 2014 resulting in an overall increase in the base charge for FY 2015. However, these results are based on preliminary data and subject to change upon receipt of audited FY-end financial information. The projected increase in the composite rate is due to the projected increase in the base charge and lower energy projections resulting from the current hydrology conditions and Lake Mead elevations.
Legal Authority

Since the proposed rates constitute a major rate adjustment as defined by 10 CFR part 903, Western will hold both a public information forum and a public comment forum. After review of public comments, Western will take further action on the proposed base charge and rates consistent with 10 CFR parts 903 and 904.

Western is establishing an electric service base charge and rates for BCP under the DOE Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7152); the Reclamation Act of 1902 (ch. 1093, 32 Stat. 388), as amended and supplemented by subsequent laws, particularly section 9(c) of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 (43 U.S.C. 485h(c)); and other acts that specifically apply to the project involved. By Delegation Order No. 00–037.00A, effective October 25, 2013, the Secretary of Energy delegated: (1) The authority to develop power and transmission rates to Western’s Administrator; (2) the authority to confirm, approve, and place such rates into effect on an interim basis to the Deputy Secretary of Energy, and (3) the authority to confirm, approve, and place into effect on a final basis, to remand or to disapprove such rates to FERC. Existing DOE procedures for public participation in power rate adjustments (10 CFR part 903) were published on September 18, 1985 (50 FR 87835).
Availability of Information

All brochures, studies, comments, memorandums, or other documents that Western initiates or uses to develop the proposed rates are available for inspection and copying at the Desert Southwest Customer Service Regional Office, Western Area Power Administration, 615 South 43rd Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona. Many of these documents and supporting information are also available on Western’s Web site at http://www.wapa. gov/dsw/pwrmkt/BCP/RateAdjust.htm.
Ratemaking Procedure Requirements
Environmental Compliance

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321–4347); Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500–1508); and DOE NEPA Regulations (10 CFR part 1021), Western has determined this action is categorically excluded from preparing an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement.

Determination Under Executive Order

12866

Western has an exemption from centralized regulatory review under Executive Order 12866. Accordingly, no clearance of this notice by the Office of Management and Budget is required.

Dated: December 20, 2013. Mark A. Gabriel,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 2014–02405 Filed 2–4–14; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 6450–01–P**

**ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY** 

**[EPA–HQ–OPP–2013–0742; FRL–9903–50]**

**Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;**  **Comment Request**

**AGENCY :**  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

**ACTION :**  Notice.

**SUMMARY :**  In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The ICR, entitled: ‘‘Submission of Unreasonable Adverse Effects Information Under FIFRA Section 6(a)(2)’’ and identified by EPA ICR No. 1204.12 and OMB Control No. 2070–


### 6898 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 24 / Wednesday, February 5, 2014 / Notices

0039, represents the renewal of an existing ICR that is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2014. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection that is summarized in this document. The ICR and accompanying material are available in the docket for public review and comment.

**DATES :**  Comments must be received on or before April 7, 2014.

**ADDRESSES :**  Submit your comments, identified by docket identification (ID) number EPA–HQ–OPP–2013–0742, by one of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

• Mail: OPP Docket, Environmental Protection Agency Docket Center (EPA/ DC), (28221T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460–0001.

• Hand Delivery: To make special arrangements for hand delivery or delivery of boxed information, please follow the instructions at http:// www.epa.gov/dockets/contacts.htm.

Additional instructions on commenting or visiting the docket, along with more information about dockets generally, is available at http://www.epa.gov/dockets.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Scott Drewes, Field and External Affairs Division (7506P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460–0001; telephone number: (703) 347–0107; fax number: (703) 305–5884; email address: drewes.scott@epa.gov

.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  I. What information is EPA particularly interested in?

Pursuant to PRA section 3506(c)(2)(A) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)), EPA specifically solicits comments and information to enable it to:

1. Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility.

2. Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency’s estimates of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used. 3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected.

4. Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.
II. What information collection activity or ICR does this action apply to?

Title: Submission of Unreasonable Adverse Effects Information Under FIFRA Section 6(a)(2).

ICR number: EPA ICR No. 1204.12. OMB control number: OMB Control
No. 2070–0039.

ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on September 30, 2014. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information, unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA’s regulations in title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), after appearing in the Federal Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers for certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.

Abstract: Section 6(a)(2) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) requires pesticide registrants to submit information to the Agency which may be relevant to the balancing of the risks and benefits of a pesticide product. The statute requires the registrant to submit any factual information that it acquires regarding adverse effects associated with its pesticidal products, and it is up to the Agency to determine whether or not that factual information constitutes an unreasonable adverse effect. In order to limit the amount of less meaningful information that might be submitted to the Agency, EPA has limited the scope of factual information that the registrant must submit. The Agency’s regulations at 40 CFR part 159 provide a detailed description of the reporting obligations of registrants under FIFRA section 6(a)(2). Burden statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 2.85 hours per response. Burden is defined in 5 CFR 1320.3(b).

The ICR, which is available in the docket along with other related materials, provides a detailed explanation of the collection activities and the burden estimate that is only briefly summarized here:

Respondents/affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this ICR include anyone who holds or has ever held a registration for a pesticide product issued under FIFRA section 3 or 24(c). The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code is 325300 (pesticide, fertilizer and other agricultural chemical manufacturing).

Estimated total number of potential respondents: 1,738.

Frequency of response: On occasion. Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 54.

Estimated total annual burden hours: 264,957 hours.

Estimated total annual costs: $15,940,734. There is no capital investment or maintenance and operational costs associated with this
ICR.
III. Are there changes in the estimates from the last approval?

There is an increase of 61,721 hours in the total estimated respondent burden compared with that identified in the ICR currently approved by OMB. This increase reflects EPA’s updating of burden estimates for this collection based upon historical information on the number incident reports per submission. Based upon revised estimates, the number of incident reports has increased from 71,000 to 93,000 with a corresponding increase in the associated burden. This change is an adjustment.
IV. What is the next step in the process for this ICR?

EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. EPA will issue another Federal Register document pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the person listed under **FOR FURTHER INFORMATION**

**CONTACT**

.


### 6899 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 24 / Wednesday, February 5, 2014 / Notices

List of Subjects

Environmental protection, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: January 14, 2014.
James Jones, Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention.

[FR Doc. 2014–02224 Filed 2–4–14; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 6560–50–P**

**ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY** 

**[EPA–HQ–OA–2014–0129; FRL–9906–20– OP]** 

**Comment Request; Draft Supporting Materials for the Science Advisory** **Board Panel on the Role of Economy Wide Modeling in U.S. EPA Analysis of**  **Air Regulations**

**AGENCY :**  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

**ACTION :**  Notice.

**SUMMARY :**  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is evaluating the appropriate role for economy-wide modeling in informing the regulatory process. Toward that end, EPA is developing an ‘‘analytic blueprint’’ of materials on the technical merits and challenges of using economy-wide models to evaluate the social costs, benefits and economic impacts associated with EPA’s air regulations. In addition, EPA will be seeking advice from the Science Advisory Board (SAB) on economy-wide modeling and will present materials from the analytic blueprint to inform a discussion of charge questions to a new SAB panel with expertise in economy-wide modeling. In a forthcoming Federal Register Notice, EPA’s Science Advisory Board Staff Office will be soliciting nominations for this panel to provide advice on the use of economy-wide models to evaluate the economic effects of air regulations. In today’s Notice, EPA is soliciting public comment on both the draft charge questions and draft analytic blueprint of materials that could be presented to the SAB in order to inform how to appropriately discuss the issues with the panel.

**DATES :**  Comments must be submitted on or before April 7, 2014.

**ADDRESSES :**  Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– OA–2014–0129 by one of the following methods:

• www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for submitting

comments.

• Email: oei.docket@epa.gov.

• Fax: (202) 566–9744. • Mail: Office of Environmental Information, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington,
DC 20460.

• Hand Delivery:

Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OA–2014– 0129. EPA’s policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change and may be made available online at www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov. The www.regulations.gov Web site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an email comment directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov your email address will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD–ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or
viruses.

Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the OEI Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566–1744, and the telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566–

1742. **FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Nathalie Simon, National Center for Environmental Economics, Office of Policy, (1809T), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202–566–2347; fax number: 202–566–2363; email address: simon.nathalie@epa.gov.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  Environmental regulations vary widely by pollutant, sectoral and geographic scope, regulatory design, types of benefits and costs, among others. The size and complexity of the U.S. economy relative to the effects of a particular regulation also raises questions about which modeling tool is most appropriate in a given setting. Air regulations have been selected to limit the scope of this analytic exercise. For each major air regulation, the EPA considers these factors when gauging which analytic tools can be applied in a practical and analytically defensible way to estimate costs, benefits, and economic impacts within a particular regulatory context.

Economy-wide models attempt to capture the interaction and feedback effects between different sectors of the economy. A common tool to capture economy-wide effects is a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model. According the EPA’s Guidelines for Conducting Economic Analyses (EPA 240–R–10–001) ‘‘CGE models simulate the workings of a market economy and can include representations of the distortions caused by taxes and regulations

. . . . They are used to calculate a set of price and quantity variables that will return the simulated economy to equilibrium after the imposition of a regulation. The social cost of the regulation can then be estimated by comparing the value of variables in the pre-regulation, ‘baseline’ equilibrium with those in the post-regulation, simulated equilibrium.’’

However, for nearly all benefit-cost analyses conducted by EPA in support of air regulations, the costs are estimated using engineering or detailed partial equilibrium sector models which are compared to benefits that are likewise estimated through partial equilibrium models. EPA has evaluated, and will continue to evaluate, the appropriate role for economy-wide modeling in informing the regulatory process. While the Advisory Council on Clean Air Compliance Analysis review of the Second Prospective Study of the Clean Air Act Amendments (EPA– COUNCIL–11–001) stated that inclusion of benefits in the economy-wide model that was specifically adapted for use in